A record number of 45,800 migratory pink-footed geese have been seen at Lancashire’s WWT Martin Mere Wetland Centre this year.

The centre is readying itself for between 10-20,000 to stay over the winter after the birds have made the 500 mile journey from Iceland.

The birds stop at Martin Mere to rest and re-fuel for upto three weeks before continuing on to their winter home in the Norfolk.

The arrival of the pink-footed geese signals the start of the migration season. The UK provides the perfect sheltered conditions for birds to find a winter sanctuary.

Nick Brooks, the centre manager said: “Geese have learnt to develop their identification skills so that they know where they are flying to. The geese will stay in this area for as long as they have a food source which is often grain on local fields. Ultimately they will move on to spend the winter in Norfolk. It is not guaranteed how long they will stay for so it is best to visit over the next week to see this spectacle, which in my opinion is the greatest in nature.”

The pink-footed goose is a medium-sized goose. It is smaller than the mute swan but bigger than a mallard. It has a pinkish grey body and a dark head and neck. The pink bill, feet and legs give it its name. They arrive from their breeding grounds in Spitsbergen, Iceland and Greenland. they are classed as an amber status bird and numbers in England are on the increase.

The geese return year after year and the oldest known goose was nearly 41 years old and could have flown over 40,000 mile in its lifetime.